Your Happiness is My Happiness
by 105ttt
Summary: Princess Cookie's birthday is in one week! A rose ball will be held to celebrate, and Princess can't wait to get started with the preparations! Knight Cookie knows that he'll be caught up in the preparations as well, but he's more than happy to help. He'd do anything for his best friend - he'll even set aside his grudge with his biggest rival if it means Princess will be happy.


There's not a thing Knight wouldn't do for Princess, his most beloved friend.

If she told him to jump, he'd ask how high. If she asked him to dance, he would. And if she commanded him to go to war, he'd bleed out for her.

But she does things for him, too. He feels the most comfortable when he's around her. He knows that he can come to her when he's facing his feelings and can't muster the courage to talk about them with anyone else. Sometimes she'll share the luxuries of royal life with him, like exquisite food or fine clothing. And she always checks on him, insisting he rest (and sometimes commanding him to do so) after a long day of training has pushed him to his limits. And when he comes back wounded from battle, she wastes no time tending to his wounds.

Of course, as the princess of the Cookie Kingdom, she doesn't _have_ to do all this for him. As far as he's concerned, she could look on him with disdain or treat him like just another lowly servant - but that's not her style. She's not that kind of person, and he knows that. He knows his friend, his princess, cares for him just as much as he does for her, and for that, he is eternally grateful. He thanks Millennial Tree regularly for the role he's been given, the role of protecting his most cherished companion.

He is nothing without her - or at least, he says that sometimes, but then she gently hits his arm and tells him not to think such things. Such is her way of saying she sees him as an equal - as much as he feels he does not deserve it. But he avoids saying things like that around her to make her happy, and they go about their merry way dealing with the trifles of castle life.

The latest trifle, it seemed, was a ball being held soon to celebrate Princess' birthday. Knight heard about it first one morning as he entered the mess hall to eat his breakfast, spotting White Choco and Pistachio chatting away with Princess. She seemed to be rambling excitedly. It put a smile on his face. Her excitement was refreshing, and it puts his soul at ease. He approached the group slowly, not wanting to intrude on their conversation.

"Oh, I'm so excited!" Princess cheered, pumping her staff in the air. "It's already been a year?"

"It has!" White Choco smiled. "And you don't look a day over 21."

"It's because I _am_ 21!" Princess laughed. "But I know what you mean. I'm not really getting _significantly_ older."

"You have a youthful soul," Pistachio remarked. "You're always off on your next adventure, sneaking out without telling your father."

Knight smirked. She certainly wasn't wrong about that. Princess had a habit of dragging Knight along into some new adventure she'd thought of on a whim. Not that he minded, of course. He was happy to watch over and keep her safe - though he often didn't need to help her except for when she tripped over her own feet. She was a bit clumsy, but in every other respect, she was capable of protecting herself with her boundless energy and willingness to throw a punch if it came down to it.

"Can you blame me? Daddy wants me to stay cooped up in the castle all day! Staying inside is sooooo boring!" Princess whined with a stomp of her foot. White Choco laughed.

"He's just looking out for you, Princess."

"I know! But I'm not a kid anymore! And I have Knight to protect me!"

"Speaking of Knight…" Pistachio's voice trailed off as she waved to him. He bowed in return and smiled at Princess when she turned around to look at him.

"Knight! Good morning!"

He took her hand and kissed it gently. "Good morning, your highness."

Princess giggled and curtsied exaggeratedly. "How art thou this fine morn?"

"Better than ever, my lady."

White Choco rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright. Can we get back to the task at hand?"

"'Task at hand'?" Knight repeated, an eyebrow raised.

"Oh, yeah!" Princess said with a grin. She grabbed Knight's hands and looked into his eyes. "My birthday is in one week!"

"Is it that soon already?" Knight asked, pretending he hadn't heard this already just a moment ago. Princess nodded quickly and jumped in place joyfully.

"It is! I'll be 22 soon! Isn't that great?"

"It is," Knight smiled gently. "It's a wonderful cause for celebration."

"We're thinking about holding a ball in her honor," Pistachio chimed in.

"Yeah! I was thinking about a rose ball!" Princess added.

Knight blinked. "A rose ball?"

"Yeah! You know! Like, a ball where all the decorations are pink and red and themed after roses? And all the guests wear pink and red clothes decorated in roses!"

"R-right," Knight nodded. Princess giggled and spun around happily.

"It's going to be great!"

"I think you'd look lovely in a rose dress," White Choco commented. Princess blushed at the compliment and waved her hand in embarrassment.

"Oh, White Choco, you flatter me too much!"

"Can't help it," White Choco winked. "You're pretty cute."

Princess jokingly slapped her arm. "White Choco!"

Knight cleared his throat. "So, when shall the ball be held?"

"It shall be held on the night of my birthday!" Princess answered before another wide grin spread across her face. "And you know what that means!"

"What does it mean?"

"It means _we_ are going to help with the preparations!"

"Who's 'we'?"

"You and I, Knight! Silly!" Princess laughed. Knight shook his head and put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's your birthday celebration. You shouldn't have to lift a finger for the preparations. In fact, as the princess, you shouldn't have to work at all-"

"Knight," Princess sighed before removing his hand from her shoulder. "I _want_ to help! You know I hate sitting around!"

Knight looked down for a moment in silence, then sighed. "I know. Alright. We'll work together."

"And that way, the work will be done twice as fast!" She cheered. Then, with a gasp, she turned to White Choco and Pistachio. "And if you two help, it'll be done _four_ times as fast!"

White Choco bowed. "Of course I'll help."

Pistachio followed suit. "Anything for you, your highness."

"Then it's settled!" Princess declared. "But I need to choose the decorations first! And the venue! And my dress!" Her eyes lit up excitedly at that last phrase. "Oh, so much to do! Come on, Knight!"

Knight struggled not to lose his balance as Princess suddenly grabbed his hand and led him away from the mess hall. He hadn't even eaten yet. _Oh well. Guess I'll eat later_, he thought.

"Where are we going?" He called out. She chuckled as she turned her head back a little to speak to him.

"We're going out to town! We're going to Herb's shop to ask about roses for decorations!"

"Isn't it a bit too early to be asking about that?" Knight suggested.

"Of course not! It takes time to prepare flower arrangements! And we're going to need a _lot_ of them!"

"That's true, but… Princess, I haven't even eaten breakfast yet."

Princess stopped in her tracks, nearly causing them both to fall over from the inertia.

"Now that you mention it… I didn't eat either! I was so busy talking to White Choco and Pistachio that I forgot! Let's go back and eat first!"

"Sounds like a plan to me," Knight smiled. Soon he felt himself being dragged right back to the castle and tossed to the side as Princess sat down at the end of the mess hall table, greedily grabbing for biscuits. Knight shook his head and sat to her right, watching with relief as Princess happily munched away at her biscuits while perusing the table for something else that looked appetizing before grabbing some biscuits for himself.

* * *

A week had passed - rather slowly, Knight remarked to himself - and the day of the ball had arrived. Knight felt as though he'd been caught in a whirlwind recently: Princess had never ceased preparing for the party. First they'd gone off to order bouquets from Herb, then Princess had traveled to Cheesecake Manor to consult Cheesecake about party activities, and then she'd made Knight help her choose her dress out of her closet of hundreds of dresses. Of course she'd tried on each and every one and asked him for his input, but she'd grow tired of changing after a few and decide to focus on something else. Needless to say, Knight was exhausted from running around for the last 7 days, and he wanted nothing more than to take it easy until the ball that night.

But Princess had other plans. He'd promised he'd help with decorations - and when she called for him, he didn't hesitate a moment to rush to her aid, despite his exhaustion.

Fortunately for him, Princess knew his body language well, and when she saw that he was moving much slower than usual and unable to really help with tossing strings of roses up high onto the tops of windowsills, she shook her head and marched over to him before setting a hand on his shoulder.

"Knight. You're too tired for this."

"I'm really not," Knight insisted, attempting to toss another string and failing miserably as it flopped to the ground.

"You should rest! White Choco, Pistachio, and I can handle this!"

"I insist I stay here and help! I shall not be outdone by White Choco-"

"Knight," Princess said sternly. Knight immediately shut his mouth. He knew his temper with his rival was a bit short, and Princess knew it too.

"Look, Knight. I want you to be rested for the ball. How can you watch over me if you pass out in the middle of everything?"

She had a point. Knight sighed.

"But I'm supposed to help you! I'm supposed to always support you!"

"And you know what would be the biggest help to me right now?" Princess asked, grabbing Knight's hand and placing hers on his. He looked tiredly into her eyes.

"What would that be?"

"I want you to go to your room and rest."

"Princess-"

"_Knight_. Go get some rest. _Please_."

Knight stood still for a moment, still looking into her eyes, then sighed.

"Alright. If that is what you command me to do."

"I'm not commanding you to do anything. I'm asking you to do it for your own sake, as your _friend_."

"Understood."

Knight began to walk away. As he reached the doorway leading out of the ballroom, he turned his head to look back at her.

"Princess?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you," he said with an earnest smile.

She smiled back at him. "Of course. I love you."

His heart skipped a beat. No matter how many times she said it, he never quite got over it.

"I love you too, Princess."

When Knight reached his room, he found a box sitting on his bed with a single rose sitting on its lid. Underneath it was a letter addressed to him, which he removed before setting aside the box and lying down to rest. He studied the handwriting and recognized it near instantaneously.

_Princess. Of course. What had she gotten for him this time? Oh, dear. Hopefully it hadn't cost her much._

He opened the letter and read it slowly - and when he was too tired to process it the first time, he read it again, this time focusing as much as he could.

_My dearest Knight,_

_Thank you so much for helping me prepare for the rose ball! I can't wait! I bought you this new armor as a present! It's pink and decorated with roses, so you'll fit right in with everyone else! Let's have a great time tonight!_

_Yours truly,_

_Princess_

He sighed and put the letter to his side before getting under the covers of his bed. She'd bought him a whole new set of armor? Just for tonight? It made him worry to think about how much it had cost. All he'd done was helped her with some errands! He would have been fine just wearing his regular armor and keeping watch over Princess from afar!

… But she was trying to be nice and repay him for his help, and he understood that, so he decided he'd wake up early enough to change into his new armor before escorting Princess to the rose ball just to make her happy and show he appreciated the gesture.

* * *

Knight found himself waiting patiently outside Princess' door as she changed into her dress. She was taking a while - mostly because it was such a big and ornate dress, and she needed Pistachio's help just to pull it over her head! And even after she'd changed, she found herself tripping over the skirt of the dress every now and then, only to be caught before she could hit the ground by Knight, who was used to this happening all too often. She laughed as he pulled her back up for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"I'm sorry, Knight! I love this dress so much, but the layers make it so easy to trip on!"

"It's alright, my princess," he assured her with a bow. She waved her fan teasingly.

"Don't get all 'my princess' on me! You don't have to act more formal just because tonight is the ball! We're still best friends! And we're going to have a blast!"

"If you wish, your highness," he bowed.

"Now you're messing with me!" She said as she elbowed him. He laughed and elbowed her back, and they continued on to the ballroom.

When they entered the ballroom, Knight was dazzled by the fruits of everyone's labor. The delicate flowers, beautiful pinks, and dramatic reds dancing around the room mesmerized him. He didn't know what he had expected, but certainly not the enchanting display that lie before him. Everything came together to create a lovely, indulgent, warm atmosphere - that is, except for White Choco's blue suit, which stood out amongst the sea of warm colors being worn by everyone else. _Or maybe only Knight felt that way. Who knew._

Princess greeted White Choco with a curtsie as she approached.

"White Choco! You look so handsome!"

"Thank you!" White Choco said with a graceful bow. "I wanted to go all out. After all, tonight is the birthday of a very important Cookie."

"Aw, White Choco…"

"May I have this dance, my princess?"

Princess gasped, and Knight did too, though much quieter. He didn't want Princess to catch onto the fact that he was displeased, but he couldn't stop a gasp from leaving his lips nonetheless.

"You may!" Princess replied happily, blush erupting onto her cheeks. White Choco grabbed hold of her waist, and she held onto White Choco's shoulders, and soon they were swaying together, getting lost among the other guests.

Knight sulked and found a chair near the food table, watching Princess from the distance as diligently as he could. Though he begrudgingly knew White Choco could protect Princess if needed, he didn't like the idea of being outdone by her. She'd humiliated him during training a little too much for his liking, and it made him feel as though he weren't strong enough to fulfill his duties.

But when Knight really looked at Princess' face and saw her gentle, peaceful smile as she leaned her head on White Choco's chest, and he felt his own heart stir in his chest, he began to understand something. If she was happy, then he was happy. That's all there was to it. And if this was what brought her happiness, then who was he to bring his petty rivalry into it? Things would work out. He could let White Choco have her way just this once. She made Princess happy in a way he couldn't, and that was alright. He had his own way of making Princess happy that only _he_ could fulfill, and that was enough.

So he decided to let himself go for just a little while and have some fun, trying to muster the courage to ask a particularly dashing man to dance with him. When that didn't work, he sought out Pistachio instead.

"Pistachio!" He called with a wave as he spotted her across the room. When he got no reply, he rushed to her side and greeted her once again.

"How are you, good miss?"

"Oh, stop," Pistachio laughed as she gave him a hug. "You look great!"

"As do you!"

"Shouldn't you be watching Princess?" Pistachio teased as she glanced to Princess somewhere else in the room, still leaning on White Choco.

"No, I think White Choco can watch her for now. And they seem happy. I don't want to interrupt them."

"Look at you!" Pistachio chuckled as she winked and elbowed him. "Not letting your jealousy get to you! I'm proud of you!"

"Oh, I'm still jealous of White Choco being stronger than me," Knight admitted sheepishly with a laugh. "But I also realize I care more about Princess being happy than my own grudge. And if she likes White Choco… who am I to take away her chance to get to know her better?"

"Good for you, Knight," Pistachio smiled. "Now, how about you dance with me? I wanted to ask White Choco, but she's already busy."

"Oh? I'm not the only one who's jealous!" Knight laughed. Pistachio pretended to punch his cheek.

"Quiet! Let's dance!"

"It would be an honor," Knight said with a bow.

They danced for about a half hour, and then they realized that they enjoyed just talking with each other better, and so they chatted away the next few hours while snacking on whatever was left after Princess' raid on the food table.

When the party ended and Princess was too lovestruck and tired to move any longer, Knight swept her off her feet and carried her to her room. As he tucked her in gently and left the room, he heard her call out.

"Good night, Knight. I love you."

He smiled, even though Princess couldn't see him, and called back to her from the doorway.

"I love you too. Good night."


End file.
